Out in LA for the World Cup and Fourth of July

I’ve been in LA for just over 12 hours now. I’m not going to get a whole lot done today as far as apartment hunting since it’s the Fourth of July.

First on the agenda today is the Germany vs. Italy World Cup semifinal. Go azzurri! Will be hitting a bar to watch the game.

In the late afternoon I will be barbecuing. No plans for this yet, but I’m hoping to go to a decent spot on the beach or up in the hills to catch the fireworks later in the evening.

The back page of the C section of today’s New York Times contains a scan of the Declaration of Independence, which is still an amazing document to read so many generations later. There’s a lot of history, good and bad, to cover in the 230 years since the Founding Fathers told the Brits to get lost. To put it in perspective, take a look at this timeline from the National Museum of American History. For those of you in need of a refresher who may want to discuss the meaning of the day in between hamburgers and beers, here’s a crash course that might come in handy.

My personal favorite Fourth of July was in 2000, when I was visiting Edinburgh, Scotland and went out with a few other Americans at the hostel where I was staying to have drinks on the Royal Mile to celebrate and watch the fireworks over Princes Street Gardens.